


Genius next door

by Yoakesan



Category: League of Legends
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Fluff, Jhin has OCD, One Shot, Short One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-05
Updated: 2020-01-05
Packaged: 2021-02-27 08:48:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 832
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22124332
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yoakesan/pseuds/Yoakesan
Summary: Jhin struggles with his OCD; Nami is a Sweet Cinnamon Roll Too Good For This World, Too Pure.
Relationships: Khada Jhin & Nami
Kudos: 46





	Genius next door

«He really just wants to congratulate you».

Jhin tilted his head slightly to one side and gave a faint, polite smile. «I’m tired», he insisted.

«You know, at this point, I think your audience _needs_ to see you. They need to know you that have a body and a face, or they will end up believing that you’re nothing more than a pretentious ghost who happens to be really good at writing plays».

«And why would that be a bad thing?».

Nami sighed. «Alright. I’ll come up with an excuse for why I can’t let him in. But I’m warning you – he will be very disappointed».

«I trust that you will take care of that».

«I will», Nami replied, quite unenthusiastically. Then she walked out of the room.

As soon as he was left alone, Jhin’s smile withered like a flower in August. He thought about the bullet he just dodged: if he had given in to Nami’s pressure, he would have had to shake hands with a semi-stranger. Even through the thick fabric of his gloves, that imaginary touch felt so sticky and dirty that his stomach heaved in rejection.

Come to think of it, it was funny how Nami suggested he should let the audience know he had a face, considering he always, _always_ wore his beloved mask. Some argued that he never took it off because he was incredibly ugly; an abomination, even. The truth was quite the opposite: indeed, he was so proud of his appearance that he was afraid that exposing his face to the tiny grains of dust that whirled in the air would be enough to ruin it.

He sat down at his desk and tried to get back to his work in progress – a lighthearted love story set in a seaside town –, but the buzzing noise in his ears kept him from focusing.

He had to complete it. He had wasted way too many days procrastinating and putting it aside; he couldn’t let himself neglect that task any longer. So, although begrudgingly, although uninspired, he started writing. His feelings of guilt eventually faded, only to be replaced by frustration: he could do better than that. The words didn’t sound right; they didn’t even _look_ right on paper. The script was far from perfect, and that was already the third draft. The next one would be the last one, obviously.

«You should have seen his face». Somehow, Nami had materialized next to him. «I swear he looked like he was about to cry».

«You never knock», Jhin complained.

Nami ignored him and continued, puffing her cheeks: «Don’t you feel sorry for him? Not even a little bit?».

«Do you mind?».

«What?».

«I’m doing something important right now».

«Oh. Are you writing?». She leaned in and tried to read, but Jhin’s handwriting was so elegant and quirky that it was hard to decipher.

«Go home, Nami». Jhin said. «I need to focus. Besides, it’s late».

«It’s not even midnight».

Jhin gave her a stern look.

Nami somehow perceived it even through his mask, so she rolled her eyes and said: «Alright. See you tomorrow. Please, don’t forget to eat».

«I won’t», he lied, though he didn’t really know he was lying. «Goodnight».

\---

He counted his steps out loud as he walked towards his flat. «One, two, three, _four_ ». He always put more emphasis on that last word, as if it was sacred. «One, two, three, _four_ ».

When he was home, he finally took off his mask. He felt safe there, but only because he spent exactly four hours a day cleaning and tidying up – from four o’clock PM to eight o’clock PM – and it was a small apartment.

He took a long warm shower, then he went to bed.

\---

«Do you think I’m mad?», Jhin asked in a casual tone. He didn’t look distressed at all; he was just curious.

«Do _you_ think you’re mad?», Nami asked in return, blinking her eyes.

«I think I’m a genius».

«I know that».

«Geniuses are often mad», Jhin continued, trying to smooth a small fold in his gloves, «or at least _different_ ».

«Well–», Nami coughed, «you _are_ different, that’s for sure».

«So?».

«What?».

«Do you think I’m mad?», Jhin repeated, almost mechanically, but still in a very calm tone of voice.

«I don’t know, Jhin. I think you’re weird, but not in a bad way. Why do you ask?».

«I don’t want to be dramatic, but–».

«You know you do, actually».

«–but sometimes I feel like I’m not particularly good at being a human being».

Nami was pleasantly surprised; it was the first time she heard Jhin speak so openly about his feelings. «Yeah, me too», she mumbled, then she added: «You’re a good person, Jhin. It’s not like you kill people for fun or whatever. Even if there was actually something wrong with you, it wouldn’t make you any less human».

Jhin listened to her attentively. When she finished speaking, he shrugged his shoulders and said: «I guess».


End file.
